The ball is only in contact with the strings for 2-3 milliseconds. In fact, it is such a brief event that I challenge anyone to try and actually see the ball hit the strings. Science tells us that this is impossible for the human eye. It simply happens too fast for it to register in the human brain. With that in mind, combined with the fact that each incoming ball is unique, the challenge of consistently finding the ideal point of contact is amplified. Yes, it is the single most important and single most challenging task in tennis. One tip to help is to try and make sure that you know exactly where in relation to your body that this contact point needs to be located. A helpful exercise is to comment after every hit whether you contacted the ball too far in front, too far behind, too far away from your body, too close, OR just right.

Joe Dinoffer has had an extensive "world class" career in the tennis industry, and has conducted clinics and exhibitions in over 50 countries. Joe also is also the owner of oncourtoffcourt.com and president of Oncourt Offcourt, Ltd., a company exclusively serving the needs of tennis, fitness, and physical education coaches with innovative training aids and educational tools. He lives in Dallas, Texas, with his wife, Monika, and their daughter, Kalindi.